Frank Lloyd Wright Architecture in Austin?

Austin’s own Jenkins team (well, just Shan & I) recently visited the Winter camp of the late Frank Lloyd Wright in Scottsdale, Arizona (called Taliesin West) to see Mr. Wright’s “other home” and offices. His primary home and main offices are in Wisconsin, but he built this facility when he was in his 70′s (when some of us might have been thinking about retiring) to have a respite away from the Winter cold of Wisconsin. We learned a lot about Frank Lloyd Wright and his philosophies, family, and personality. However, what we came for was the answer to the question, “How does one become a legend in Architecture and how can we take that back to Austin?”

Even if you are not a fan of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture, he created an entire style of architecture that influenced our culture even until today. Most famous for the Guggenheim, he also founded what we now call “modern” or “contemporary” architecture. So, how did he do it? One could argue, quite successfully, that he had a gift and that the gift is the primary reason for his success. However, a gift alone doesn’t normally account for someone’s success at this level. What he did that I think differentiated him was that he studied details…in nature especially. He watched and studied the local plant material, the way the sunlight hit and created shadows, and the way nature reminded him of other things. Then, he translated that into the architecture.  He must have spent hours, maybe even days, studying the site where he would place Taliesin West. Everything he did had a purpose, and most of it was related to how he wanted people to experience life or how nature influenced him and ultimately the architecture.  The pursuit of excellence, ultimately, along with his innate gift is what brought about the legend. That’s exciting for those of us who strive to pursue excellence.

See highlights of the tour we took below…